The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-04-12
"THE BOOM"


on the streets and in offices and bust
ness houses eagerly looking for the
-"boon which the city is said to be
enjoying. They learn about the boom
through the newspapers, and are told
concerning 1t by individuals, but no
body has been able to put his finger on
IL" as il were Merchants discover
nothing extraordinary in their sales;
bankers note no increased activity in
money; builders are not rushed to any
distressing extent, and one fails to OBJ
serve any marked change in the ap-
pear&nce of thingsin business and hnan-
cial circles.
Yesterday, 9 gentleman was seen
rushing frantioally down Main
Street. Being halted and cues
toned as to the reason for Ii
haste when all around seemed in its
normal, good-natured, easy-going con
dition, he said: II am On the track OF
the boom and don't propose that it
shall escape me. 1 have heard OF the
boom for month past, but never be-
fore could I locate it. At last / think
l have cornered it, and am now
on my way to see it" Half an hour
later, the same gentleman was encoun-
tered Ieisurely moving up Main Street,
his hands in his pockets, his eyes
turned in the direction of the store
windows, and a satisfied expression
resting on his countenance. Asked If
he had been successful IN his search, he
replied that he had; he had run the
boom down, had seen It, and was now
content. The boom consisted of a $500
forfeit on the option OF q piece OF land ;
the time had expired. the buyer had
not put in an appearance, and the
ewner OF the lot retained the title tc
the land and the $500 forfeit.
This is not an imaginary sketch, 5u
absolute and faithful truth. There i:
10 boom" here, and We have beer
unable to find the intelligent man who
knows why there should be boom
what there is 20 create boom or main
tain one. There must be something
more than the reckless, untruthful as
eer..ous Of newspaper to inaucurate {
t-"Ia. Ar ti:e newspapers III Christen-
Com cannot create boom by merely
saying there is boom. Tt
have a real estate boom there mus
be land TO sell and purchaser;
fo- it; the land is here, in small lots anC
large ones, in garden patches, in farms
and ranches there is land everywher,
and at every price. but where are til
buyers? "a syndicate from Iowa, ~!
gentleman from Cincinnati" "a Pitts
burg party" may be actual, living
facts, but why are they not Visibl
elsewhere than in newspapers, ant
where is the money which they ar
said to be flying about? A boom mus
have som ething back of it other thar
the cheap newspaper chatter; if thi
were not so, ten-dollar-a-week serb
bier, with a font of type and pint O
ink, could create q boom. There ar
millions of dollars of hard casl
involved in the Los Angeles, tn
Omaha and the Kansas City beoms
while In Salt Lake there is no NOR
money than was here two months or 81
months or q year ago, and what
equally chilling to boom fever is th
fact that nothing is in sight which ca
be said to be inducive of an influx {
money. The mines are doing all the
can, as they always have done: ayr
culture is in promising condition, a
usual, and-well, what other sources {
money are there? Let the boomers at
ever. Railroad building would h~l
matters along, but we are to have non
Of that this year; an influx of rich me
who want climate and scenery, an
are willing to I've here to oh
tain them, would give. Us boon
but is there q prospect of such an II
vasion; the establishment of some MAJ
ufacturing industries would bool
things, but who will make the venture
The truth IS, there is no boom in Sa
Lake. nor Is there a reasonably f.
prospect OF one. There is better fee
ing among the financial and busine
classes than has existed for some tim
and this gives promise OF lair season
and here the boom begins and end
the gihberiugof newspapers 70 the cor
trliv notEith standing.
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